Daily BrewMayor Rob Ford overexposure bad for Toronto, still good for U.S. comedians
The word of the day in the scandal engulfing Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is: overexposure. Fresh off a wave of U.S. media appearances, the exploits of foul-mouthed, crack-smoking, drinking-and-driving Ford have become as well known across America as they have in Canada.
"Rob Ford" has become such a two-word punch line that when talk show host Jay Leno had a rare sit down interview with former U.S. president George W. Bush, he just had to ask about Ford.
During a conversation about Bush's health and a recent scare, Leno asked whether Bush had any advice for Ford. "Have an annual physical," Bush said amid a fit of giggles.
The Ford saga has invaded the continental psyche to the point where pretty much everyone has something to say about it. Vince Vaughan chatted casually about him on David Letterman's show, Bette Midler tweets about his troubles, NFL and ESPN media personalities shake their heads on air and in columns.
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart continues to stay on top of the Ford saga, starting last night's show with a segment on the frenetic council session that stripped Ford of powers.
Remember that time Ford barreled across the council chamber and knocked the smaller, older Coun. Pam McConnell to the ground? Stewart had this to say:
That poor, poor councilwoman. You know she got into politics thinking, 'This may be a dirty, unrewarding business, but at least I'll never have to worry about going to work and being trampled by a crackhead.
To up the ante, the show sent correspondent Jessica Williams to Toronto to find out how Ford has any support remaining. Thankfully, she found Coun. John Parker for an interview. He may be the smartest, sharpest member of council and was able to explain why the vote to strip Ford of power wasn't unanimous.
More on Rob Ford:
A recap of Mayor Rob Ford’s new show on Sun News Network
Rick Mercer explains why some people still support Rob Ford
Ontario PC Leader says he would support provincial intervention in Rob Ford crisis
'You attacked Kuwait,' Mayor Rob Ford says as council strips away key powers
Full coverage: Rob Ford
But apparently, overexposure is not as good for Canada as it is for American comedians. A global media study released on Wednesday suggests that the Rob Ford scandal is raising Toronto's international profile, but almost entirely through negative exposure.
Cormex Research says that newspaper coverage of the city has increased 31 per cent since last year. But the amount of negative coverage tripled over the same period. Ford's freefall accounted for 60 per cent of that coverage.
"[T]here's a new narrative – bad political governance – and its quickly overtaking the good-news story that is Toronto globally," study author Andrew Laing said in a statement.
Yet all this exposure couldn't help Ford's own media empire. Sun News Network has announced that it cancelled Ford Nation – a one-hour campaign ad/talk show featuring Rob and Doug Ford – after one episode due to the cost of production.
Despite it being the most-watched show in the history of the network, the five hours of filming and eight hours of post production was just too much to invest on a weekly basis.
But never fear, there will be plenty more Ford on other channels, probably every channel, until there is a resolution at city hall.
